Considering moving/retiring to Mexico

Hello about San Miguel,

Organic and natural healing is HUGE in SMA. No worries there. Safety...depends on how you move and where you live. Often issues arise from Internationals parading around in expensive SUVs and diamond rings or running a chat about money. NEVER talk about money or money issues with anyone other than someone you are 100% sure about. If the wrong people hear you talking about your wealth or money you have in your house....asking for trouble. Use a gravity fed water system next to your sinks for drinking and you are good to go. Water is less of an issue than it was years ago. Clean ALL fruits and veggies with food grade peroxide mixture...find online. We ship it here and family of seven with no health issues. If you interact with locals and make an effort to assimilate, you will be MUCH better off. If you are scared and want to separate yourself from the Mexican community....you are going to struggle. Embrace a new lifestyle and learn some Spanish and be kind to the nationals. SMA has much to offer with beautiful real estate, art and music everything and everywhere, dance and cultural events, movie theater, banking, hospitals, etc...very little you will be without these days. The expat community is 10K strong. Walking club, horseback riding, bridge clubs, tennis, golf....it's all here. Negatives are LOTS of traffic with fumes. Lots of tourism on weekends. Very citified. There is a town outside SMA about 45 minutes with cleaner air and smaller expat community...this is popular with people who want to lay low and enjoy the chaos of San Miguel 'when needed.' [Moderated: No free ad on the forum]. Happy Trails! San Cristobal is beautiful too but check out stats on crime...I hear it may be elevated, not sure right now though. Regards, Ashley

Thank you for such a complete and thoughtful reply!

I have spent several months in San Cristobal and did not feel unsafe; the usual precautions apply of course. It is very beautiful, and much much less gringoized than San Miguel. This is in large part due to the climate - San Cristobal is two thousand feet higher and colder and damper, so you need to be a bit hardy, since central heating does not exist. Go for a visit and see, it won't be a wasted trip since SC and Chiapas are wonderful to visit. Chiapas has a great variety of landscape, unlike central Mexico, and is also much greener (but alas humid too), and a fantastic indigenous cultural life, which is almost nonexistent in San Miguel. It is also on the border with Guatemala for easy explorative trips or visa runs. Central Mexico has more American stores, and is more developed. Depends on your needs....

Let me know what you find out.  I really would like to live there about 2.5 months to 3 a year for the winter.  If I could figure out how.

So would I Susan. This winter, after our horrific winter in Minnesota. I am already dreading this coming winter. 3-4 months in Mexico would be wonderful.

Thanks for your reply.  Well, we're on our way to San Miguel de Allende ... tomorrow!  So I guess we're about to find out for ourselves!  If it works out ... I can let you know how to 'make it happen'!
Ciao,
Joan

It is not hard to make it happen for a few months if you are retired or have an income that does not require a specific location (working online, writer, artist, etc.), and don't have family responsibilities (school age children, sick elderly parent, etc). In fact it is really easy in SMA - Just look on craigslist and you will see tons of very nice, quiet, pretty, comfortable houses and apartments for rent at very reasonable rates. It is the best place for rentals in Mexico. You can arrange ahead of time or go down and stay in a temporary place while looking around. Piece of cake. Just get on the plane and go! San Cristobal is more challenging, there are much fewer rentals online or even on site, and many are not up to Western standards and/or are cold and damp, as I said, since it is a higher altitude. The few nicer places are fairly high in price, too. But I can't imagine anything easier than arranging to spend some winter months in SMA.

Great!  In fact, we're hoping for a permanent retirement there (with no young children or ailing parents).  So your encouraging words are most  heartening.  We've been on a wild goose-chase for the past month 1/2 in search of the 'place to be' (from Madeira to France) -- with no luck (expensive, hard to find organic, affordable fruit & veg, need to have a car to live quietly & less expensively).  So -- travel weary -- we fly out of Copenhagen tonight (a roundabout flight for a lower price) for NY and on to Mexico tomorrow.  We've set up a temporary stay and will search -- as you recommend -- Craigslist, et al -- starting on Friday (well, maybe Saturday -- I think we've earned a day to collapse!).
Cheers,
Joan

Hi - where were you that so expensive you had to go to Copenhagen? I have gone back and forth from Europe every year for over a dozen years - France is my base but i have explored many many places. The most interesting for me - I love adventure, SMA would be too tame for me! - was the Balkans but it is hard to imagine settling there. My dream was France, the connections are profound and I am somewhat at home there. (I am there right now). But it is far from home, air fares are soaring, so to speak, the prices are high, you need a car in many situations (and I don't even drive!), and the French have attitudes I am fed up with. Plus there is a thing called winter, even in the south. Mexico is a very reasonable choice. It is close to the States, has lots of cultural life, the people are nice, there is a variety of landscapes and cultural styles to explore, and there are lots of air flights. Southwest will start flying to Mexico City in November, might be interesting although Cancun flights are already operating and are not economical. Just be prudent with craigslist; no large advances, no Western Union, etc. I have an eye for scams - and most of the French listings are scams, out of Africa - and the San Miguel ones seem genuine. Better to find a temporary place - and some are very reasonable - and look around. If you go now it is low season and you can pick and choose as you will. Spend some time there and see how you feel. Good luck! get some rest!

Last Winter almost killed me.  Have you done much research?  I don't know much about Mexico living.  I have only visited a couple of times for short periods.  I visited Oaxaca which has a great climate, warm but not humid like the coast.  I would love to hear any information you find.

I have been to Mexico for long stays - up to six months (an epic voyage!) - seven or eight times, I have stopped counting. I have visited and stayed in many places so my "research" is first hand! And would require a book length account! My first visit was to SMA but that was 25 years ago when it was much quieter, although already gringoized. It was one of the best moments of my life, but neither I nor SMA are the same. I prefer places with a real Mexican majority, although the presence of some gringos is good, for services (food products) etc.. If you have questions on a specific place or area or aspect of life, please ask. Otherwise it is a vast topic. Learn Spanish!!! That is important!! Find a place to stay for a while then travel around. The buses are good, the taxis are cheap. Feasible and fun!

That sounds like great advice!

You never mentioned your visit to the Mexican Consulate for residency application. How did it go?